Thoughts from the road….

I am finally on my way home.  It’s been two weeks of conferences and family travel (we went to Taylor University to check it out for my oldest son) and as my husband logs hours behind the wheel, I am furiously editing a book.  (while singing Disney songs, which I’ve discovered are greatly motivating).   Occasionally, I Iook up from my computer.  Check out the road, hunt for anything new.  It’s pretty much the same – pavement, cornfields, farms, the occasional trucker.  We zipped through Chicago last night and for a while watched the bright lights against the dark sky. 

            Then I put my head down again and keep working. Plugging away at my book.

            I don’t mind travelling, especially with my family and when it includes seeing good friends.  And the ACFW is a high point for me every year —  Hanging out with friends, meeting new people.  Sharing the joy I have for writing.  But for all the fun I am having, I know there are folks equally miserable, feeling overwhelmed, wondering if anyone will ever recognize the amazing story God has given them. 

            I have been thinking about these folks since hitting the road with my family.  Watching my children struggle and grow into amazing people has taught me that success doesn’t happen overnight.  Every step they take today prepares them for the people they will be tomorrow.   And, during the President’s reception at Taylor University, the president of Taylor put words to this thought:  Pursue Faithfulness, and you will find Significance. 

            Pursue Faithfulness, and you will find Significance. 

            I’ve been rolling this concept around my brain for the last two days.  When we pursue faithfulness, we pursue seeking God.  We pursue becoming men and women of character.  We pursue being good stewards of our gifts.  We pursue honing our craft. 

Faithfulness changes our heart, and suddenly we are freed from the stress of having to arrange our own success.  Faithfulness is, in its own regard, success. (Hello – “well done, good and faithful servant.”)

I can’t pursue being on the best-seller list, or winning awards.  It’s empty and fleeting, regardless of how good it feels.  But I can pursue faithfulness.  I can pursue knowing God, and being a good steward of what He’s given me. 

So, as you go home, as I go home, back into our lives, let us pledge to pursue faithfulness – in our relationships – with God, with family, with friends and coworkers, in our responsibilities, and in our gifts.  And let God bring the significance.

MBT will be back in action starting tomorrow.  We’re on the last leg of our writer’s journey.   We’ll be gearing up for the black moment and epiphany over the next few weeks, but next stop on our journey is “writing character change.”  How do we prepare a Character for his epiphany without it feeling forced?   Stop by tomorrow and find out!

Rachel’s thoughts:

Great points, Suz. Faithfulness requires focused. The reason my most of us struggle in  faithfulness, even for the things we love and want to do, is because we lack structure and focus.

We live by the tyranny of the urgent. And there are times when our emotions are so drawn and pulled we can’t help but follow the tyrant!

We must learn to settle down, hear the Lord, surrender what we can’t handle to Him.

As a society we love drama way toooo much. 😉 We tend to lead with our hearts and hope our heads catch up.

Find the head-heart balance. Set up a schedule for yourself, a doable schedule, and try to keep it. Adjust when you have to, but do all you can to stay on task.

Think of a football game. There are rules, structure, designed plays, time limits. The players run specific routes based on the coach’s called plays.

But every once in awhile, the quarterback, or the defensive captain calls an “audible.” He looks out over the field and says, “the called play ain’t gonna work.”

What would it be like, however, if the offense knelt at the scrimmage line with NO plan, just waiting for the QB to call a play number?

Or what if they linemen just decided, “I’m not going to meet my blocking assignment, I’m going to ‘go long?’”

Football would be a mess. The team would never win, and my guess a good many players would be injured.

Don’t live by the “audible.”

Make a play book. Write down your plans. Run your life by them unless you know that you know an audible must be called. Unless you know that you know God has intervened.

If you are faithful in little, He will be faithful in much! Let’s run with endurance.